North American automobile owners, generally, prefer larger and heavier cars. Because of their weights and speed, automobiles pose serious safety problems. Automobile producers regularly implement engineering changes stemming from the need to increase safety or energy efficiency. Since 1985, an increasing number of motor vehicles have been equipped with power windows and power door locks. Once considered optional accessories, power door locks and power windows are now assembled on approximately 60% of all new motor vehicles. These added features provide the operator with a quick and convenient means for locking and unlocking the doors and for rolling and unrolling of the windows.
The power window feature is operational when the key is set in the run position and the accessories are receiving power from the battery. The power door lock feature is operational, regardless of the ignition key's position, as long as the motor vehicle is receiving power from the battery. In addition, many newer vehicles have a safety feature installed to cause the doors to lock when the vehicle reaches a predetermined speed.
As a result of the installation of power windows and power door locks in most newly built automobiles, two new safety hazards now exist.
In the event of an accident, resulting in the incapacitation of the vehicle's electrical power supply, the conscious motor vehicle operator is often unable to unlock the doors or roll down the windows. The operator and passengers are still able to unlock the doors manually provided that there is no child safety lock engaged. However, the operator and passengers are not able to roll down the windows. This provides a serious safety concern for the conscious operator and passengers, in the event of a structural damage to the door frames or door posts which is significant enough to prevent the manual opening of the doors from the inside. In the past, the only remedy for this situation was the breaking of a window from the inside. This was only possible if the proper tool was accessible.
In the event of an accident that results in the physical incapacitation or loss of consciousness of the vehicle operator and/or the passengers, the operator and/or the passengers are often unable to unlock the doors or roll down the windows. This represents a serious safety concern for the rescue personal wishing to access the injured persons if the doors are locked and the windows are rolled up. In the past, the only remedy was the manual breaking of a window from the outside or the use of the Jaws of Life.TM.. However, the breaking of the motor vehicle window from the outside is likely to exacerbate any preexisting injuries, and the force of shattering glass may, on its own, inflict personal injury on the occupants. The utilization of the Jaws of Life.TM. is limited by the response time of the search and rescue personnel and/or the fire department.
These safety concerns multiply when there is the added danger of fire, submersion, vehicle roll over or explosion. The autonomic nervous system response to immediate, life threatening danger, is the flight or fight response. History has demonstrated that the typical motor vehicle operator and/or passenger response to entrapment in an automobile in unsafe circumstances is panic.
Example of vehicle exit systems available in the prior art to unlock power door locks or/and roll down power windows following an accident are described in the following documents:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,381,829 issued on May 3, 1983 to B. Montaron;
U.S. Pat. No. 4,785,907 issued on Nov. 22, 1988 to K Aoki et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,327,990 issued on Jul. 12, 1994 to A.B. Busquets;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,547,208 issued on Aug. 20, 1996 to J W Chappell et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,574,315 issued on Nov. 12, 1996 to H J Weber;
Although several vehicle emergency exit systems are available in the prior art, it is believed that a need still exists for a better system to reduce the incidence of delayed medical intervention, drowning, smoke inhalation and burns, now occurring as a result of entrapment of people in automobiles with power door lock and power window features.